Holes

Holes
Louis Sachar
Publisher/Date:Yearling Books 2002
Reading Level: ages 9-12
# of Pages: 240
Genre: Fiction

Summary:

Stanley Yelnats is falsely accused of stealing a pair of shoes. He is sent to Camp Green Lake where troubled boys go to dig holes to "build character". What they really doing however, is digging for buried treasure left by the famous outlaw Kate Barlow. She lived in the town of Green Lake years before, and she fell in love and kissed Sam the onion picker who was a black man. He was killed for breaking the law, and Kate got her revenge by killing the sheriff, and she became the most feared outlaw in Texas. She later robbed Stanley's great-grandfather whose treasure is the treasure she buried and the boys are digging to find. The Warden at Camp Green Lake tells the boys that if they find anything interesting while digging, they are to show it to Mr. Sir or Mr. Pendanski. One day Stanley finds an old lipstick tube, but he has to give it to X-Ray, another boy in the group. X-Ray gets the day off, but the Warden makes the other boys dig and dig in his hole. This is when Stanley realizes that they aren't just there to build character, they are looking for something, but he never tells them where the lipstick tube really came from. Zero, another boy from the group, and Stanley become friends as Stanley teaches him to read, and Zero digs part of Stanley's daily hole. The other boys don't like it when Zero digs part of Stanley's hole, and one day they have a big fight. Zero ends up running away from Camp Green Lake, which is in the middle of a barren desert, so all the camp directors think that he is dead. Because Zero is a ward of the state, they are able to almost completely delete him from the system. Awhile later, Stanley decides to go looking for Zero, and attempts to drive the water truck to find him. He drives into a hole, and he begins running into the nothingness. He finds Zero in an old boat. He has been living off of some old bottled peaches found in the boat (which were bottled by Kate Barlow, and the boat was Sam's boat) and Stanley wants to take him to "God's thumb" which is a mountain close by. They hike up the mountain, Zero is very sick, but at the top they find water and onions. They stay there til Zero feels better, living off of the onions and the water source there. They decided to try to run back home, but first get supplies from camp, and Stanley wants to try to find treasure where he really found the lipstick tube. They go back to camp, wait til dark, and start digging. They find a chest, but get caught by the Warden, Mr. Sir, and Mr. Pendanski. They find that they have been standing in a nest of yellow spotted lizards, so nobody wants to approach them. The next morning, Stanley's lawyer comes to free Stanley, and they find that the chest belonged to his great-grandfather. Stanley and Zero get to leave, Camp Green Lake is closed down and reopened as a girls camp, Stanley and Zero become rich, Zero finds his mother, and the curse on Stanley's family is lifted because he carried Zero up a mountain and sang while he drank some water.

Who benefits from reading this book?

Those who like reading books that involve the unfurling of mysteries would really enjoy this book. I think this is a great book for kids, especially those in the preteen stage. It teaches some good lessons, and I think a lot of kids can really relate to the character, Stanley. However, this book is just a fun book to read, and anyone would benefit from reading it.

What problems/conflicts could this book potentially cause?

There could be some elements of the book that might scare young kids. For example the Warden scratches Mr. Sir with poisonous nail polish on. Also, Kate Barlow murders people, and she gets bit by a yellow spotted lizard which kills her. Also, there are instances of bullying at Camp Green Lake. The boys get into a couple fights, and Mr. Pendanski really belittles Zero. He doesn't set a very good example. Other than that, there aren't a lot of things that would cause much problems.

My Reaction:

Holes is one of my all time favorite books. The first time I read it, I was seven years old. Each time I read it I enjoy how the mystery unfolds. There are so many factors involved, and really three stories in one book. I love how they all tie in together at the end of the book. I like how there are three different stories, and the author switches between them throughout the book. It's very fun for me to read, and I think it's one that every kid would enjoy reading.